Bulgarian Conductor Takes Princeton Symphony Role

Bulgarian conductor Rossen Milanov has been appointed to lead the Princeton Symphony Orchestra in the US.

Philadelphia-based conductor Milanov is now up to four orchestra positions. Best known as associate conductor of the Philadelphia Orchestra and music director of Camden's Symphony in C, Milanov is now also music director of the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

He reportedly is contracted for three years with the Princeton orchestra, which marks its 30th anniversary this season. He also has an ongoing commitment to the Philadelphia Orchestra and has committed to Symphony in C through 2011.

Milanov made his guest-conducting debut with the Princeton ensemble in April 2008, when the orchestra was between music directors. Critics noted considerable chemistry between musicians and conductor, but Milanov's commitments, not just in the United States but to the New Symphony Orchestra in his native Bulgaria, suggested there was little time for more. However, the Princeton orchestra isn't full-time, and the 2009-2010 season has him conducting just two of the five concerts in Richardson Auditorium.

Those programs reflect the wide-ranging repertoire demanded of him in Philadelphia and Camden. They include Ravel's Ma Mère l'Oye, Haydn's Symphony No. 88, Prokofiev's Symphony No. 1, and Elgar's Enigma Variations.